ONE year after joining the Kouga Local Municipality as a PR councillor and only three months after being appointed as ward councillor, Jaques Alexander has been hard at work with various projects in his ward and has recently established an outreach programme to help unemployed people improve their interview skills.
Alexander, who was sworn in as a PR councillor in January last year, was deployed to assist with specific service delivery issues in wards 4, 5 and 15.
When he was sworn in as Ward 4 councillor in November, Alexander was determined to help the people in his ward with the various issues they faced.
As part of his mission to help, Alexander, in conjunction with Ward 5 councillor Melanie Biko, planned to assist the elderly to refurbish the Protea Old Age Home in Arcadia, Humansdorp.
In addition, he said Kruisfontein needed a secondary school, and he was therefore in communication with the Department of Education to establish a school in the area, which he has made a priority on his to-do list.
Furthermore, he said substance abuse, teenage pregnancy, illegal shebeens, and illegal occupation of houses and plots were some of the challenges faced in his ward which he plans to deal with.
“I am very passionate about service delivery and will always put my community first,” said Alexander.
“Unfortunately, I cannot please everyone at the same time or resolve their problems as soon as I wish to have them sorted because we have systems and protocols to follow.
“At least now I have access to the relevant managers to try to resolve reported matters.”
He said he was not able to change the municipality at once, but he could contribute by making suggestions, ensuring standard operating procedures were in place and serving his community as a leader and not as a politician.
“I want to be the link as prescribed in the roles and duties of a councillor. People must come to me with faith and trust that I can help them,” said Alexander.
Before joining the local municipality as a councillor, Alexander established a soup kitchen in his area, during the nationwide level five lockdown in April 2020, and has been actively involved with various projects in his community for many years.
In a bid to bring sustainable employment opportunities to the many unemployed youths in his community, Alexander recently established a youth programme to empower young people, especially those who have absconded from school.
With Alexander’s many years of experience in retail management and since he was the chairperson at Humansdorp Secondary School and Kruisfontein Primary School, he has sat on the interview panel at the two schools on numerous occasions.
He said while he served on the interview panel, he witnessed many interviewees, even educators, lose focus and perform poorly.
Furthermore he noticed many were not able to introduce themselves and were unable to answer simple questions.
“A curriculum vitae is a written advert of someone, but to present yourself during an interview can be challenging,” said Alexander.
“It is important that people know how to conduct themselves and how to speak and when to speak.”
He said the programme would take place once a week at his ward office in Sewende Laan and will be open to anyone interested in developing their interview skills.
“The programme will start with small groups and sessions should not be longer than an hour,” said Alexander.
He said during the sessions there would be a practical assessment and then theoretical scenarios.
“Our youth need to learn these skills so that they can be ready and equipped when entering the job market,” said Alexander.
For more information email Jacques Alexander at jaques.alexander75@gmail.com.
